Funding for COLORES was provided in part by: Frederick Hammersley Fund, New Mexico PBS Great Southwestern Arts & Education Endowment Fund, and the Nellita E. Walker Fund for KNME-TV at the Albuquerque Community Foundation... ...New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and by the National Endowment for the Arts... and Viewers Like You.

THIS TIME, ON COLORES!

JOINING US FROM ANOTHER GALAXY, ALAX OF THE EARLY SHOW SHARES WHAT HE LEARNED ABOUT CARING FOR LITTLE HUMANS.

"MURAL FEST SIXTY-SIX" HELPED REVITALIZE MIAMI OKLAHOMA AND PROVIDED ARTISTS AN OPPORTUNITY TO SHOWCASE THEIR WORK ON A GRAND SCALE.

SELF-TAUGHT PHOTOGRAPHER DAVID HUMPHREYS SHARES THE CHALLENGES OF MAKING A LIVING AND BEING AN ARTIST.

IT'S ALL AHEAD ON COLORES!

AN ALIEN WITH A MISSION >>Faith Perez: Today, on COLORES, we have a very special guest.

Um, Alax the Alien has come to join us.

>>Faith Perez: Hi Alax!

>>Alax: Hi everyone!

Oh, I'm so excited to be here!

Hi!

>>Faith Perez: Hi!

I'm so excited!

>>Alax: How are you?

>>Faith Perez: I'm, I'm really good.

How are you?

>>Alax: Oh, I'm so fantastic.

I'm so excited.

This is so exciting!

>>Faith Perez: It is exciting!

I'm so glad to have you here.

Thanks for joining us and coming... >>Alax: My Pleasure.

>>Faith Perez: ... Coming from your spaceship to be here with us.

>>Alax: Yeah.

I don't often beam out of the spaceship, but here we go.

>>Faith Perez: So I understand you're an alien from another planet, right?

>>Alax: This is absolutely true.

>>Faith Perez: Okay.

Well, how is life like on your world?

>>Alax: Oh, it's very furry.

Everything is made of fur covered in fur.

It's quite a wonderful world, but very different from yours.

For example, we don't have little people.

Yeah, we just come out fully formed >>Faith Perez: <laugh> and full of fur.

>>Alax: And full of fur.

Yeah.

So I came across space and time, time and space to learn all about little people and how you raise them and care for them.

>>Faith Perez: Wow.

>>Alax: Yeah.

>>Faith Perez: That's amazing.

>>Alax: It is.

It's very fun.

>>Faith Perez: Well, why New Mexico?

>>Alax: New Mexico?

Well, as everyone knows, it's the scientific and cultural hub of the universe.

<laugh> and I had to come.

Also, It's the only place we know of that has its own department dedicated to the growth in education and care of little ones, the E.C.E.C.D.

Wow.

Yeah.

Early childhood education and care.

>>Faith Perez: That's amazing!

>>Alax: It is amazing!

>>Faith Perez: So you've been here for a little bit.

How do you, how are you liking it?

Have you tried Green chili?

>>Alax: Oh, green chili, yes.

I tried it once and I passed out for a week.

>>Faith Perez: <laugh> >>Alax: Yes.

I used to have red fur, but had some green chili and look at me now!

>>Faith Perez: Wow!

>>Alax: It's delicious and dangerous.

>>Faith Perez: <laugh> >>Alax: Yes.

Guard the secret well.

>>Faith Perez: <laugh> We will.

We will.

We'll never tell.

We'll never tell.

So tell me, what is the early show all about?

>>Alax: Well, the early show, which as you know, is early, it's in the earliest time slot available, which is the earliest one.

So we call it the early show, and it is all about little humans.

And we bring on educators, specialists, experts, in little people and how they grow, how they develop, what they need.

And I ask them all kinds of questions like, why are they crying?

Why are they laughing?

What are they doing?

We don't really know.

And I came to learn as much as I can and share the information with the universe.

>>Faith Perez: Wow.

So you're not even just sharing it with Earth, you're sharing it with the whole universe?!

>>Alax: That's right!

Yeah.

Even this show, did you know everything we broadcast goes to the entire universe and they watch.

>>Faith Perez:I didn't know that.

>>Alax: Yeah.

Yeah.

>>Faith Perez: Oh wow.

Now I feel even more nervous.

>>Alax: You have a lot of fans you may not know about.

>>Faith Perez: Oh wow.

I didn't know that.

<laugh>.

That's so cool.

>>Alax: Yeah.

>>Faith Perez: So tell me, what are some things that you still wanna learn?

>>Alax: Oh, wow.

There's so many things.

Have you ever met one of these little people?

>>Faith Perez: Yes, I've met many little people.

>>Alax: They're totally mysterious!

>>Faith Perez: I was a little person too.

>>Alax: Yeah, that's right.

You were!

>>Faith Perez: I was at one point.

>>Alax: What was the most important thing your parents did for you when you were a little one growing up?

>>Faith Perez: Took care of me and like, gave me hugs and love.

>>Alax: Hugs.

Love.

>>Faith Perez: I think hugs are very important.

>>Alax: Yeah.

See, these are things we don't even know about.

>>Faith Perez: I know.

>>Alax: Love, the emotions, physical touch, reading, sleeping, everything.

It's all new to us.

So I just wanna learn about all of it and how it helps.

>>Faith Perez: That's amazing.

>>Alax: And also, I kind of have a secret agenda.

>>Faith Perez: What's the secret?

>>Alax: I want to meet Dolly Parton.

She is a huge influence in our culture.

We, we practically worship her and her songs.

She's amazing and... >>Faith Perez: She's a queen!

>>Alax: Boy, if I could meet her that would, excuse me, that would really change the trajectory of my entire existence!

>>Faith Perez: What's your favorite Dolly Parton song?

>>Alax: Whoa.

>>Faith Perez: <laugh> >>Alax: And I will always love you!!

>>Faith Perez: That was beautiful.

That was so beautiful.

>>Alax: I Love that song.

I sing it maybe 612,000 times a day.

>>Faith Perez: So then why is it important for you to share all of this information with us, earthlings and the universe?

>>Alax: Well, I think everybody could benefit from it.

>>Faith: Uhhuh.

<affirmative>.

>>Alax: Yeah.

You know, it's not stuff you're just born knowing.

That's the other strange things about humans.

>>Faith: Yeah.

>>Alax: On our planet.

We just know it all right from the beginning.

>>Faith: Wow.

>>Alax: But humans have to learn, especially about caring for their little ones.

So I feel like it would be a really good idea to share the information with as broad an audience as possible.

>>Faith Perez: That's amazing.

>>Alax: Yeah.

We can all learn how to take care of little humans.

>>Faith Perez: Yes.

And ourselves too, sometimes, right?

>>Alax: And ourselves!

That's a great point.

Wow!

>>Alax: So I heard that your heart changes color based on how you're feeling... >>Alax: Exactly!

>>Faith Perez: So, how are you feeling right now?

>>Alax: Right now I'm feeling quite good.

Thank you.

But if you go ahead and tap my heart, it'll change.

>>Faith Perez: Oh!

That's so cool!

>>Alax: Now I feel a different emotion.

>>Faith Perez: Wow!

How are you feeling right now?

>>Alax: Really, really happy.

>>Faith Perez: Yay.

I'm feeling happy to you, you can't see it in my heart place but I am.

>>Alax: That is the strangest thing about you humans.

>>Faith Perez: I know!

>>Alax: I mean, we can just show each other what we're feeling.

But you, it's all on the inside.

>>Faith Perez: It is!

>>Alax: You have to talk to each other and show each other how you're feeling and why you're feeling.

>>Faith Perez: I know.

There's so much going on inside of us.

>>Alax: Yeah.

We did a whole episode on this and it was so fascinating to me.

Really mysterious!

>>Faith Perez: What was the coolest thing you learned on that episode?

>>Alax: Whoa...

The coolest thing I learned?

Well, I learned that all of us have big feelings.

>>Faith Perez: Yeah.

>>Alax: And the best way to deal with them is to show them.

Yeah.

Most people don't show what they feel.

Yeah.

But if they did, they would just let it go.

>>Faith Perez: Yes.

That is so true.

>>Alax: Yeah!

>>Faith Perez: Let it go.

>>Alax: Let it go!

>>Together: Let it gooo!!

>>Alax: <laugh>.

Hey, you know that song?!

>>Faith Perez: I do!

>>Alax: Woohoo!

>>Alax: All right!

Well thank you for having me on your show.

>>Faith Perez: Yeah.

Thank you for being here!

>>Alax: Thank you everyone out there.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Yay.

I just wish I could teleport out of here.

But I mean, how do you, how do you do this?

>>Faith Perez: So there's a door.

>>Alax: Hello?

Teleport??

>>Faith Perez: I know.

We, humans, use doors.

Those are our portals.

>>Alax: Quite strange!

Whoo!

>>Faith Perez: Bye!

HOMETOWN COLOR Hello, everyone.

Local broadcaster Michael Woodruff.

Here's your forecast for today.

Sunny with a high near 75.

Perfect weather for Mural fest coming up at 10:00 in the beautiful downtown Miami.

It's a free event for the entire family, so come on down.

They're going to be here till about 5:00 tonight while you're doing that- continue to listen to some great music here on KGLC 100.9 radio on the Route.

We're in our fourth year trying this.

2017 was our first try.

This year we will have 11 new murals put up by ten artists from around the state and myself, and then one mural painted by local artists.

So 12 new paintings.

That's quite, quite a big thing, really, for a small town.

We're three local artists.

Jeanette, how long have you lived here?

Since I was 15.

Oh, 'bout 45 years now.

I've lived here for about 45 years as well.

Jessica got a hold of us and said, hey, we have a wall.

Would you be interested?

And we said, yeah.

The Oklahoma Mural Syndicate is a nonprofit that advocates and creates public art throughout the state of Oklahoma.

They were one of the first communities that reached out to us after seeing what we've done with plaza walls in Oklahoma City.

And they were like, hey, will you come to our community and paint it all up as well?

And we said, yeah, of course.

You know, in 2017, when we first started this, we had people from the community walk up and say, wow, this is so cool what you guys are doing.

And we've never seen anything like this.

Our first year we tried Mural Fest out here.

This building was vacant at the time and since then it got renovated, was sold, and now it's a daycare center.

The praying mantis.

That was mine.

Bugs are cool.

It's really great to introduce modern art to, you know, a community that might be used to some more traditional murals.

But I like to describe my style as colorful, abstract work.

Um, I do a lot of work that references typography and calligraphy.

I think it's like a nice little moment of joy, you know?

Like not even just just today, but like, just seeing the murals every day is like, just a little moment of happiness or joy or, you know, excitement of having a little bit of art right in your life.

That's called a doodle grid.

And it's just another form to put up a big image on a wall.

In this instance, yeah.

I mean, you just fill up the whole wall with a bunch of different reference points just to in order to get the image up on the wall.

And then once I have that, then I can kind of just play jazz and improvise a little bit with the color and...

I have painted my whole life.

Six years ago, I finally, after years of wanting to try, it, started spray painting.

It takes a lot of practice to really kind of get it down.

Really It comes down to they say it's called can control that's the term it's your ability to control the can.

There are options with you can trade out the caps.

You've got skinny caps, you've got fat caps for fills, you've got there's stencil caps, which I have never used.

But you can get super fine lines with those.

*music* All right, here we go.

I love the idea of coming to a smaller town.

The lady and her family, they just bought stickers from me.

Her son said that he liked the robots the best and that it inspired him to do some art.

So I think that's awesome, right?

That's kind of the goal.

I don't I don't know exactly where the robots came from.

I don't have like some big purpose about why I started painting them, but I think they're cool.

You know, I have always been kind of attracted to, like, painting things that I would have thought were awesome as a kid, you know.

You're listening to KGLC 100.9FM Radio on the route- local broadcaster Michael Woodrow hanging out with you this afternoon.

Hey, come on down.

to Mural Fest here in beautiful downtown Miami.

They got some great stuff.

And while you're at it, stop by the Coleman Theater to get tickets for tonight's music performance.

It's air conditioned.

It's fun.

It's KGLC 100.9 FM radio on the route.

Welcome to the beautiful, historic "Coleman Theater Beautiful".

This is on the stage where the Marx Brothers performed, where, of course, Will Rogers was here, where where Tom Mix rode his horse on the stage and what you see behind me, flown halfway down from the flier space, is Miami's very first mural.

This is the backdrop that was here on opening night in 1929.

This is a mural that I painted about the history of commerce and life in Miami, Oklahoma.

Miami is an interesting little town.

The economy of it was really based on local lead and zinc mine.

It was the biggest supplier of Lead and Zinc for the world really during World War One and World War Two.

And that built the town and it also ruined the environment.

It's kind of that eternal story of the good and the bad mixed together.

When we moved here, there were a lot of buildings on Main Street that were boarded up, the windows were boarded up, and yet it survives and it's building up now.

Downtown's looking good keeps getting improved.

We have events like Mural Fest.

Great.

It's a small town just trying to make their downtown prettier It's very encouraging.

Just a great sign to see, you know, a relatively small town that's embracing the arts in such a way.

I wish the more small towns and Oklahoma would do the same, because I do think that it revitalizes the community a little bit and and it gives people something to look at every day, you know, and...

When we first moved here, we had B.F. Goodrich and it was a really happening little place on the go.

And then Goodrich shut down.

It was like Miami just lost its will to live almost.

People talk about it.

They see the murals, and they just talk about how happy it makes them feel.

We're starting to take some pride in things that we're doing again, and it makes me happy to drive down Main and see life.

Well, the mural fest is finally coming to an end.

If you get to come down here, it's going to be open 24/7.

They did such a wonderful job.

We want to thank them again for another wonderful year.

FINDING A NEW APPROACH I started out as a photographer.

I am now a fine art reproductionist, fine art printer, and I have photographed everything from food to jewelry, to people, corporate type work.

But, I've always been an artist and so I've always created art work.

It's across the board.

I would say 70/30 70 percent my creativity and what I want to shoot, 30 percent might be client based.

The artwork has become more accepted and, it sells.

It's important to make a living and it is a challenge to be an artist and make a living at it.

When you find good representation and you find galleries that love your work and appreciate you, that is a really plus because unless you find someone who is really concerned about selling your work, or putting it in front of clients, no one knows who you are here.

As far as fine art; one of my first pieces of photographic fine art would be that artichoke.

So many people have fallen in love with the artichoke.

The blue crab is a very popular image.

That rose is another one that has been well received.

This piece is actually in the LSU Museum of Art's collection as an 8-foot-by-8-foot piece of art work.

A gallery came to me and said, we want to create some art work for a local hotel; three big flowers that float on the walls at Renaissance Hotel on circular pieces polycarbonate.

Polycarbonate is really a stronger plexiglass; a more substantial piece of plastic.

So it is thicker.

I had never done anything like that before.

So, the process becomes more unusual and difficult because you are working on a different sub- straight.

Everything starts with an actual true photograph, but then taking that into the computer, scaling it to the size of the actual piece of artwork you want, then actually cutting it apart in the computer so that you know that it is going to fit when you get back to the actual handwork.

I had to figure out a way to create the skin of the art, which is what I do with all of the pieces behind me.

I create the skin on a specific type of material.

Once it is printed, all of the work is done by hand.

So, each individual piece is an original, because nothing comes out the same every time.

A lot of mathematics goes into it, because you are dealing with a fixed scale of a piece of board or plexi or whatever.

One of the printers over here is a 60 inch printer.

In essence, I could print 60 inches wide by whatever length.

But, ever since I started doing fine art, I have always worked in grids, in sections, in segments.

It also afforded me the ability to work very, very, very big because I could print four or five boards with images like quadrant, quadrant, quadrant; cut those pieces out and maybe the pieces are 8 inches, 10 inches square.

And, so you have a multiple of maybe 200 pieces.

You are ending up with a piece of artwork that can be 10 feet by 12 feet high.

I started out in analog, using film, working with 35, 2 1/4 X 4-by-5 cameras shooting big sheets of film, Polaroid to test.

I put in a full dark room here where I would process the film, process the negatives.

And, then I had a dark room where I would print as well.

I took courses at LSU, but I ran out of money to go back to LSU so what I did was I bought Time-Life.

I would buy one book every two weeks.

I would read it from front to back.

Then I turned my living room into a studio and started shooting images for my portfolio and slowly but surely taught myself everything about photography.

I would go around and show my work.

I would go back to my apartment and I'd wait for the phone to ring.

The phone wouldn't ring.

So I had plenty of time to create art work and create imagery.

My portfolio got stronger.

Finally, I had a couple of agencies call me and take a chance on me doing some work for them.

From my portfolio, they could tell that I felt like everything I created should be art.

I think that's what set me apart in some respects.

They would tell me, well you are more creative than some of the photographers, but they are more technical.

But, in essence, they liked the creativity.

That was an important part of it.

So slowly, but surely, I started building up more and more clients; Raisin Canes, Tony's Saccharie, Izzo's, Walkons.

We shot lobsters for a company in Maine.

We shot for just about every food manufacturer in the south, over the years.

I have also done jewelry for a lot of different jewelry companies.

I did almost all of the starting collection for the LSU Museum of Art when they were opening, which includes silver, innuit, sculptures, beautiful paintings, which was incredible to have all of that artwork come through the studio.

TO VIEW THIS AND OTHER COLORES PROGRAMS GO TO: New Mexico PBS dot org and look for COLORES under Local Productions.

Also, LOOK FOR US ON FACEBOOK AND INSTAGRAM.

"UNTIL NEXT WEEK, THANK YOU FOR WATCHING."

Funding for COLORES was provided in part by: Frederick Hammersley Fund, New Mexico PBS Great Southwestern Arts & Education Endowment Fund, and the Nellita E. Walker Fund for KNME-TV at the Albuquerque Community Foundation... ...New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and by the National Endowment for the Arts... and Viewers Like You.